Method and apparatus for removing articles from molds



l.hay 26, 193s.

A. E. ERICKSON METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVING ARTICLES FROM MOLDS s'sheets-she'et 1 Filed Nov. 24, 1936 INVENToR A .ANTON E. ERICKSON I .f1/Vm. ./A .6

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IIIIIIII *ATTORNEY July 26, 1938. A. E. ERICKSON 2,124,513

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVING ARTICLES FROM MOLDS Filed Nov. 24, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENToRL man s. ER/cxsoN BY a?. u

July 26, 1938. A. E. ERICKSON' METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVING ARTICLES FROM MOLDS Filed NOV. 24, 1936 3 sheets-Shen s INVENTOR; ANTON E. ERJcKsoN A TT ORNEY.

Patented July 26, 1938 UNITED STATES METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR REMOVING ARTICLES FROM MOLDS Anton E. Erickson, Milwaukee, Wis., assignor to United States Rubber Products, Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of Delaware Application November 24, 1936, Serial No. 112,483

20 Claims.

This invention relates to a method of, and an apparatus for, loosening and removing rubber articles from molds in which they are formed or vulcanized, and in particular it relates to a method and means for removing pneumatic tires from mold sections after the vulcanizing operation.

In the manufacturing of pneumatic tires and after vulcanization the mold containing a tire is separated, leaving the tire adhering to one of the mold sections. Tires, due to the many projections or ribs forming the tread configuration, adhere in relatively tight engagement to the mold sections. In commercial production it is essential to remove the tires from the mold sections quickly and without injury to the tires.

In general, the invention comprises a conveyor for moving a lower mold section containing a tire along a predetermined path, means disposed adjacent the conveyor for progressively depressing and lifting successive portions of the tire from the mold, and means adjacent the conveyor opposite the rst named means for restricting lateral movement of the mold and for imparting rotary movement to the mold as it is moved along the conveyor.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a simple and positive apparatus for automatically loosening and removing tires from mold sections as they move along a conveyor. Another object is to provide an apparatus which will be adaptable to continuous production methods, and which will operate without injury or without imparting excessive strains to 35 the tires. A further object is to provide an apparatus capable of accommodating various sizes of molds without requiring adjustment of the apparatus.

Other objects and advantages will appear more 40 fully in the following detailed description, when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a plan view of an embodiment of apparatus for practicing my invention; y

45 Fig. 2 is a side elevational view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a transverse View, in section, of the apparatus taken along lines III-III of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a transverse view, in section, of means for driving a vertical' conveyor, taken along lines 50 iv-Iv of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a transverse View, in section, of a strip- 'Ihe present invention is designed for use in cooperation with a continuously traveling conveyor of conventional form serving to carry tire mold sections on a horizontal plane. In the embodiment which I have illustrated, the upper half 5 or lid of each tire mold is removed in a previous operation, thus leaving the tire projection from and adhering to the lower mold section.

The invention may be `divided into three principal componentsz-a conveyor, stripping means, 10 and means cooperable with the stripping means for rotating the tire mold on the conveyor.

The conveyor is of conventional form, and, as shown in particular in Figs.Y 1 and 3 of the drawings, comprises essentially a structural frame- 15 work l supporting conveyor tracks 2 and 3. Endless conveyor chains 4 and 5 ride on the tracks 2 and 3, respectively. Additional tracks 6 and l support the chains 4 and 5 in their return movement. A sheet covering 8 in the form of a 20 table top completes the structure of the conveyor.

The conveyor chains move continuously during the operation of the apparatus, by means of a conventional form of driving means, not shown. On top of the conveyor and supported by chains 4 and 5 is shown by dot and dash lines the relativeposition of va lower mold section 9 and a tire I0 within the mold.

Positioned adjacent to the conveyor is a stripping mechanism comprising a plurality of ngers Il adaptable to engage with and loosen the tire from the mold. These ngers are disposed in a row, in a plane parallel to the plane defined by the chains 4 and 5, in angular relation to the path of the conveyor. Each finger ll is oi L- shape, the laterally extending portion of which lies substantially in a horizontal plane. A bracket l2 through a pivot I3 supports each finger Il independently. 'Ihe fingers may be moved upwardly by pressure exerted against the extending 40 portion, while a stop I4 prevents downward pivotal movement of the ngers.

As shown in Fig. 5, the end portions of the iingers Il are rounded so that, even though they are lower than the top surface of the mold B, the fingers will adjust themselves to engage the top surface of the mold. Such a condition is advantageous in that it is essential for the fingers to engage the tire l0 at a point relatively close:A to the central plane of the tire. 50

Due to different sizes of molds having diiferent thicknesses, it is desirable to provide means for vertically adjusting the ngers. 'Ihis is accomplished by the support for the fingers,

which in general comprises frames l5 for posi- 55( l tioning vertically slidable posts I6.v A structural beam I1 'to which the brackets I2 are attached Y Y erating conditions.

is supported by theV postsV I 6.V A threaded rod I 8 axially extending fromV each post I6 engages in threaded relation with a worm gear I9 coniined between brackets and 2I extending from the frames I5. A worm vwheel 22 positioned in complementary relation to the vworm vgear I!!v is supported by a shaft V23 having bearings in the frames I5.

As shown in Fig. 1, the shaft 23 is connected iby a gear reduction unit 24 to a motor Y25. Depend-v ing upon the thickness of the molds 9, the -mo'tor 25 may be operated to raise or lower theentire assembly of fingers lto suit the'most desirable ophereinafter. Y v

As the fingers II engage Vwith'thetire Illthere Vis a tendency for such actionV to move'the tireand y mold laterallyjof the Vconveyor and away from the iineers. VTo overcomeA this condition I provide means for limiting thelateral movement of the tire and moldg This means isin the form of-a.

vertical 4conveyorfwhich, in addition to provid-f ingY aV Vbacking for the jrrnolds,YY also operates as means for rotating the molds as they'm'ove along the conveyor path.

The backing or vertical conveyor is disposedadjacent tothe 'mold carrying conveyor and on the side of the Y,co-ruleyor opposite 'to Athe,tirestripping Y ngers. A framework 26 Yforming a continuation ofthe mold carrying ,conveyor supports the verti#v y `cal-*conveyon V1 Positioned' on .top of. the framework 26is a track support 21: forming along ovate member.V and includingtracks 28, 29, and 30 -(Fig. 3)`. VRotatable .around Vthe track vis an endless conveyor chain 3| including lrollers 32 and 33 for riding` on tracks 29. and 30, respectively. Additional rollers `llriding `on track 28 are secured toxblocks, 'iatta-che`d ltothe conveyor chain 3|.Y By `this means the vertical YYconveyor. is "supported Vas it. rotates. A rubber or resilient .pad 361s at-V tachedV to each of the blocks 35'toprovide meansv of contactrwith the mold sections 9.v

'Fhevertical conveyor is power driven, Yand. its face 'adjacent to the. mold I carrying rconveyor moves in the same direction as'the mold conveyor; The drive for' the vertical conveyor is illustrat'ed-inparticular in Fig. 4, `and includes two drive sprockets'l and 38'which engage with the rollers 32 and 33, respectively, .for .propelling the conveyorchain and its associated devices. The sprockets'l .and 38 are attached to a shaft39 journaled inbosses extending fromthe track supe.

port 21 andits connecting'members.v A miter Y gear llIi'I keyed -to'the shaft 39 meshes witha VvIniter :rollers v32 and 33 Yfor assisting in the-smooth operation ofthe conveyor.Y

Vgear 4l mounted on shaft 42. Therlatter shaft is journaled in bosses forming a part of a gear housing Idi?. At the outer end of shaft 4261s keyed a sprocket 44 which engages with a chain IIiV extending to a source of power.Y Y

I'f desirable', the vertical conveyor may be drivenv from Vthe mold carrying conveyor anda varie able speed unitXnot shown) may lbe interposed between the drive to permit variation oftherdrivf ing `speed ofthe Vver-tical conveyor relative totheV mold carrying conveyor.Y Y H Y At the end Vof the' verticalconveyorvopposite Y' thej driveY end,vidler` sprockets 46 Aengage with the v.'Ihe operation of the apparatus.fisdiagramv matica'llyillustratedin Figs; 6,l 7, 8',.an'd9. 'Iiie The specic operation of the fingers asthey engage the tire will be described' iingers VII are angularly disposed'relative to the mold carrying conveyor. Therefore, as the mold is carried along with the conveyor it strikes one or more of the fingers. yIhe iirst Vaction as` shown in Fig. 6 is that the'mold is moved laterally of the conveyor until it rests; against the resilient pads 376 of the verticalconveyor. As the'mold continues to move 'along the Vconveyor the distance between theV vertical conveyor and the ngers Vlessens with the result thatV the mold is rmly held against the resilient pads.

y 'I'he result of this contactY is such thatthe moldY is moved with a rotary motion'along the conveyor.

The iingers act upon the tire in a progressive manner andu compress successive portions of the the tire against the fingers causes the fingers to swing about their pivots, thus resulting in an upward movement of the `fingers (Fig. 8).. This upward movement, assisted by the pressureof the lingers against the. tire, not only loosens the tire in the mold butl tends to liftrthe tire outof the mold.; Each successive iinger grips the tire independently iat a location close to the 'topf ofthe mold,4 and as the tire moves upwardly fromv .the mold, thefollowing fingers engage with lower p'or- `tions ,ofthe^tire, thereby insuring positive remov` tireto loosen 4,it from the mold, as shown in Fig. '7. As the ldistance between the lingers and the verti- .mcalconveyor is further` decreased, the pressure of molds. VAny difference in the Vdiameter of the..

tire or :mold is accommodated Vautomatically :by theangulardispositionfof the row of iingers. As

the .moldient-ers the stripping apparatus the dis-r tancebetween the ngers andthe Vertical conveyor may be suiiicient to accommodatethe largest size of V4production tire, while the fingers at the opposite end of the apparatus may be close enough to insure proper removal of the smallest production tires Vfrom the mold.v

. -Adjustment of the lingers is sometimes necessary in view of the different thicknesses of molds.

' It is 'desirable for the lower surface of the liingers to rest upon'or` closely approach the top surface of the mold. However, if the lower surface'of the ngersisr slightly below the top surface vof .the

l molds no objectionable `results will follow as the curvature of the fingers is such that they Will strike ythevmold and, likea cam, ride up and over the Vtop surface of the molds. Such an advantageousfeatureeliminates the necessity of accurate adjustment. Y.

Whena mold carrying'a tire reaches the end of theoperation of the presentapparatus and the tire hasbeen completely loosened 'fromthe mold,

as vshownin Fig. .9. the tire maythereafter .bef liftedand removed iromthe mold by any. conventional apparatus for such purpose.

. V'I'lie present; apparatusV effectively loosens tires" from molds regardless of the distance betweenv successivev molds. l:For example, vthe successive molds may 'zbe adjacent to eachother and `the apparatus maystart to .strip a tirefrom a .mold

while Vthe meml the preceding mo1d Sis sti1'1ntheV process of being stripped' from-its mold; l

While I have thus shown and described a positive and efficient method and apparatus for stripping tires from molds, it is to be understoodthat I contemplate all obvious modifications of the invention except as restricted by the scope of the appended claims. 1

Having thus described my invention, what Iv claim and desire to protect by LettersV Patent is l. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, means for advancing the mold member, means located along the path of the mold advancing means for imparting rotary movement to the mold member, and means located along the path of the mold advancing means for progressively deecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member.

2. 'In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, means for advancing the mold member, means located along the path of the mold advancing means for imparting rotary movement to the mold member, and means located along the path of the mold advancing means for progressively dei'lecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member and simultaneously eiecting a lifting movement of the tire away from the mold member.

3. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, means for advancing the mold member, means located along the path of the mold advancing means for progressively deflecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member, and means cooperable with the deflecting means for imparting rotary movement to the mold member.

4. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, and a plurality of fingers, each having a turning movement in a plane generally transversely of the direction of the movement of the mold, located along the path of the conveyor for progressively deflecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member.

5. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, and a plurality of rocking fingers located along the path of the conveyor and forming a group angularly disposed relative to the path of the conveyor for progressively deiiecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member.

6. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, and a plurality of independent fingers located along the path of the conveyor for progressively deecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member, each of said fingers being pivotally supported at a point below the top surfaceof the mold member.

7. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, a plurality of lingers located along the path of the conveyor for progressively defiecting portions of the article from contact ywith the mold member, and means located along the path of the conveyor and opposite said iingers for imparting rotary movement to the mold member.

8. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, and a plurality of independent rocking fingers located along the path of the conveyor for progressively deiiecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member, said fingers being progressively positioned in the direction of movement of the conveyor closer to the path of the conveyor.

9. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, and a plurality of independent rocking fingers located along the path of the conveyor for progressively deilecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member,

said fingers being positioned horizontally closer to the path of the conveyor at the advanced end of the conveyor than at the advancing end of the conveyor.

10. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, a plurality of ngers located along the path of the conveyor for progressively deflecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member, and means located along the path of the conveyor and opposite said iingers for imparting rotary movement to the mold member, the distance between said ngers and said means for imparting rotary movement progres-- sively decreasing in the direction of movement of the conveyor.

1l. In apparatus for loosening a molded article from a mold member, a conveyor for supporting and advancing the mold member, a second conveyor positioned at one side of the first named conveyor and movable in the direction of the rst named conveyor, and a plurality of iingers located along the path of the mold advancing conveyor for progressively deflecting portions of the article from contact with the mold member and for moving the mold member into engagement with the second conveyor.

12. The method of loosening a tire from a mold member, which comprises advancing the mold member along a determinate path, imparting rotary movement tothe mold member as it is advanced, and progressively deflecting portions of the tire from contact with the mold and simultaneously effecting a lifting action against said tire portions.

13. The method of loosening a tire from a mold member, which comprises advancing the mold member along a determinate path, imparting rotary movement to the mold member as it isadvanced, progressively deflecting portions of the tire from contact with the mold member and simultaneously effecting a lifting action against said tire portions, and progressively increasing the deflecting and lifting actions.

14. The method of loosening a tire. from a mold member, which comprises advancing the mold member along a determinate path, imparting rotary movement to the mold as it is advanced, and applying lateral pressure against the crown of the tire for deflecting portions of the tire from contact with the mold member and exerting a lifting force on the tire and away from the mold member.

15. The method of loosening a tire from a mold member, which comprises rolling a mold member on a horizontal plane along a determinate path while applying progressively increased pressure laterally of the crown of the tire for deflecting circumferentially successive portions of the tire from contact with the mold member.

16. The method of loosening a tire from a mold member, which comprises rolling a mold member on a horizontal plane along a determinate path while applying progressively increased pressure laterally of the crown of the tire for deflecting circumferentially successive portions of the tire from contact with the mold member, and

4- v simultaneously exertingr'a lifting fore on the tire away from the mold memben: Y `17; Inapparatusffor loosening VVa tire from a moldmember, a conveyor for tire molds, aplurality of lingers located atone' side .of the conveyor for progressive-ly deecting 'portions 4of the tire from contact rwith the m'old memben'eachof said fingers being pivotally supported in a man-l `eral pressureagainst the lingers,r and means for controlling the normalelevation of the ingers.

19; In apparatus fory loosening a' tire from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the'mold member, means located along thepath of'the conveyor for imparting rotary movement to the mold member, and a plurality of fingersv located at one side ofthe v'conveyor for progressively de-A fleetingportions,"ofethev tire from V,contact with the mold member, eac-h of said ngersbeing piv' otally supported in a manner resulting in upward movement fof the ngers uponY the application of lateral'pressureagainst the ingers 20. In apparatusfor loosening a tire from a mold member, a conveyor for advancing the mold member, means located along the path of .the conveyor for imparting rotary movement to the mold member, and arpluralityof ngerslocated at one side of the conveyor for progressively deflecting portions of the tire from contact with the mold member, each of sai-d Iingers being piv-Y otally supported'in a manner resulting in upward movement of the fingers upon the application of lateral pressure Vagainst the lingeraand the distancebetween said fingers and said means for imparting rotary movement progressively decreasing in, adirection toward the discharge end of the apparatus. Y ANTON E. ERICKSON.' 

